Another step to school inclusion: Development and validation of the Children's Attitudes Toward Autism Questionnaire.
The CATAQ gives you a quick, three-part snapshot of how typical peers view classmates with autism.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Derguy et al. (2021) built a new kid-friendly survey. It asks elementary students how they feel about classmates with autism.
The team named it the Children's Attitudes Toward Autism Questionnaire, or CATAQ for short. They tested it on neurotypical kids to see if the numbers hold up.
What they found
The survey broke into three clean parts: friendly thoughts, sad or angry thoughts, and learning-about-autism thoughts. All three parts stayed steady across kids.
Girls, older kids, and kids who already knew someone with a disability scored higher on the friendly side. That pattern shows the tool is working as hoped.
How this fits with other research
Bossaert et al. (2013) tried a similar three-part attitude scale called CATCH. Their numbers fell apart; only a tiny seven-item chunk held together. CATAQ now offers a working three-factor option where CATCH could not.
Auyeung et al. (2008) gave us the AQ-Child to spot autistic traits. CATAQ flips the lens: instead of labeling the autistic child, it measures how peers see that child. Together the tools give a fuller classroom picture.
Howell et al. (2021) released ABLE-Autism the same year. ABLE helps teachers list learning barriers in special schools, while CATAQ helps general-ed teachers gauge peer attitudes. Using both gives a front-to-back view of school life.
Why it matters
You can now give the 15-minute CATAQ before and after inclusion lessons. If friendly scores rise, your anti-stigma program is working. If they stall, you know exactly which subscale to target next.
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Join Free →Hand the CATAQ to a fifth-grade class, score it, and use the friendly-thoughts items to pick your first social-skills lesson topic.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
Research has shown that negative attitudes toward a different child can appear very early in development. Unfortunately, these negative attitudes are one of the most important barriers to the school inclusion of children with autism. Despite the increasing amount of research, no tool reliably measures these attitudes among young students. The objective of this study was to develop and validate a questionnaire (Children's Attitudes Toward Autism Questionnaire) to evaluate attitudes of students in elementary school toward their peers with autism. Elementary school students (N = 204) completed the Children's Attitudes Toward Autism Questionnaire and two other scales assessing behavioral intentions toward peers with a mental disability (Shared Activities Questionnaire-B) and familiarity with disability and autism. Results first showed that the Children's Attitudes Toward Autism Questionnaire reliably measured the concept of attitude through three sub-dimensions (namely, the cognitive, affective, and behavioral dimensions). Second, analyses confirmed that the Children's Attitudes Toward Autism Questionnaire corresponds with previous knowledge on this topic, namely, that attitudes were more positive in girls, older children, and children familiar with disability. In conclusion, the Children's Attitudes Toward Autism Questionnaire is the first scale (1) to assess all the dimensions of attitudes toward autism among elementary school children (from the age of 6 years old) and (2) to show theoretical and statistical relevance. From now on, the Children's Attitudes Toward Autism Questionnaire can be used to assess attitudes of young children toward their peers with autism. This is an important step forward, in particular for evaluating the effects of anti-stigma programs that are increasingly implemented in schools.
Autism : the international journal of research and practice, 2021 · doi:10.1177/13623613211000163